The need for meaning has always been there affecting how you feel about your work, but the need gets stronger and for most people only peaks beyond 65.[i]
Worries about meaning surround you – like ivy round a tree
- I’ve done a lot – but what will I be remembered for?
- Maybe it’s time to give something back? To make a difference.
- Why do I do this work – it’s draining, and I want something energising.
- I don’t want the next thing I do to be retirement
If you don’t deal with the worries, you can become overrun and stuck, along with the other 70% of people who are not engaged with their work.
Meaning is highly personal and contextual.
Meaning is different for different people. It also changes over time. What was meaningful for you in your twenties is probably very different to what is meaningful for you now.
Meaning is elusive though.
Very few people can tell you what gives them meaning. It’s not easy, mostly unconscious, and evolves as you do. Most people find it much easier to say what they don’t want. Dis-covering what gives you meaning takes time and attention.
Doing work that is meaningful to you also makes a huge difference.
Studies show doing meaningful work improves job satisfaction, productivity, and loyalty. People are more resilient, feel better and live longer. They have lower anxiety and stress. [ii]
Whether you believe your work is meaningful relates to four factors [iii]
- How coherent the work is with who you are—now
- The ability to contribute beyond yourself
- Opportunities for growth and accomplishment
- The impact on your wider life
Unfortunately, it isn’t a simple shopping list—the four factors interact and influence each other. If you aren’t growing anymore, you may come to resent the impact it has on your wider life. If the work isn’t coherent with who you are anymore, motivation to succeed will be difficult.
It isn’t an objective assessment either. You feel if your work has meaning. You feel it, and you know it.
Non-one ever regrets spending a little time updating their sense of meaning – are you ready?
Extract from: Dancing with fear and confidence: How to liberate yourself and your career in mid-life by Laura Walker
[i] The Future of Work is Human: Findings from the Workhuman Analytics & research Institute Survey Report 2019
[ii] Blake A. Allan, Chelsea Dexter, Rebecca Kinsey & Shelby Parker (2018) Meaningful work and mental health: job satisfaction as a moderator, Journal of Mental Health, 27:1, 38-44.
Lips-Wiersma, M. & Morris, L. 2009, Discriminating Between ‘Meaningful Work’ and the ‘Management of Meaning’, Journal of Business Ethics 88:491–511
[iii] Neal Chalofsky, 2003—An emerging construct for meaningful work, Human Resource Development International, 6:1, 69-83.
Allan, Blake A. Duffy, Ryan D. Collisson, Brian (2018) Helping others increases meaningful work: Evidence from three experiments, Journal of Counselling
Fulfilling work 